Wash Away My Colors (Mayday!)
by Shitsuren69
Summary: Role-Swap AU. When Masaomi comes to Ikebukuro at the request of his childhood best friend, the last thing he expects is to be tangled in a strange game of war that seems to have swallowed the city whole. For the sake of saving Mikado, will he forsake the new friends he make?
1. Prologues

"Do not go near the fandom," I told myself. "Wait until the summer. Wait until you bring your grades up." So much for that, right?

This story is another one of my "What will happen if two characters switch places?" AU, where Mikado is the one to have come to Ikebukuro when he was in middle school instead of Masaomi. Most of my thoughts on characterization comes straight from season 2 of the anime and the later novels, but there will be no direct spoilers.

As of now, I have no intention of pairing anyone up. There will be one-sided romances and hints, but there won't be any established pair (yeah, not even ShinraxCelty - the reason for that will become clear as the story progresses). I want the focus of this story to be character building and relationship building.

The story title is from the song "My Demons" by Starset.

Warnings for the rest of the story (Don't worry, I'll put the corresponding warnings in each chapter): AU and therefore OOCness, disabilities/disfigurement, emotional/physical/mental abuse, twisted love, mind games, domesticity, brutality, violence, and general dark/psychopathic tendencies.

* * *

**Prologue A: 2 Months and a Week Ago**

The girl stared at the object in front of her with hooded eyes.

"Well?" the man asked, grinning at her like the Cheshire cat. He watched her with amusement, clearly enjoying the way even her usual polite detachment could not shake off the pure abnormality that was the object in front of them. "Can you do it?"

To be honest, the question that the man asked was not the question she heard. After all, they both knew that she would do it without hesitation. No, the true question was not whether or not she could do it; rather, it was a question of whether or not she could truly follow this man to the ends of the world, just as she had sworn she would. How unfair, she couldn't help but to feel. He would never truly trust her, despite everything.

"You must understand," the man added with sincerity, "you're the only one I can trust with this."

She thought that that might be a lie. After all, he was surrounded by those who would gladly die for him, herself included. But it was still a lovely lie to hear. It was just what her heart needed for her to come to the decision. Not that she would have dared to refuse, but it put her mind at ease. So what if this object was unusual? She owed this man everything.

She nodded without any doubt or fear. "Don't worry, Izaya-san. I will take care of it."

"I knew you I could count on you, Saki."

* * *

**Prologue B: 2 Months Ago**

The city nightscape was, without a doubt, his favorite to stare into. Despite the darkness blanketing the skies, the lights of the city shone out like a beacon out to sea. Although people often claimed the underground world came alive at night, he couldn't help but to disagree with that. Even at night, the lights of the city were much too bright to hide sin. Then when, you might ask, would be the best time for what the underground is known for?

Well, wasn't it obvious? If the lights were too bright, then you just had to blind those who got too close. Hide your sin in the plain brightness of light.

A loud crash reverberated through the air, closely followed by the stench of gasoline. Finally, it was time. He slowed to a stop before turning to face the other.

"That was childish, don't you think?" his enemy asked him, lips drawn back in a snarl. "Running away only to arrive at a dead end? Tell me, are you so desperate to get away that you had to throw gasoline at me?"

"It's not quite desperation," he stated honestly. With a simple flick of his wrists, he lit the match. With an innocent smile that one would expect from a naïve child, he tossed the lit match at his enemy. "It's more of a… calculated risk."

The fire swallowed his enemy whole, adding to the light of the city. Just as he had thought. You couldn't see the sin in this kind of light.

* * *

**Prologue C: 2 Weeks Ago**

He recoiled from the stench of ashes before he realized that his sister was holding to him tight. If it were the usual, he wouldn't have cared at all that she was hugging him; she had always been a bit of an eccentric. But what was different this time was the shivers down her body as she clung tightly to him as if he was anchoring her to reality. What was different was the way her hands alternated from squeezing too tightly onto him to shaking as soon as she relaxed them.

"Sis?" He asked finally. He would have ignored her, but her clinginess was getting in the way of his homework. Not to mention she was shaking too much for him to be able to write properly.

"Let me just stay like this," she whispered, her voice hoarse. It was different from the confident older sister role that she usually played. "I didn't think he'd target our company."

That caught his attention. "They attacked your Pharmacy?"

"You don't have to worry, Seiji," his sister said, rubbing her cheek against his shoulder. Ah, she was calming down now. "We're going to be okay. I still have a lot of money saved up. We should leave. How would you like to go to school in the Americas?"

"What about _her_?"

There was a small pause as his sister's grip tightened. Then she relaxed (no more shakes, he noted) and with a smile in her voice she said, "In a safe location."

He didn't trust his sister. If whatever happened to her Pharmacy was so bad to the point that she came home smelling like ashes and shaking, then there was no way that _she_ could be safe. With that thought, Seiji made up his mind. Well, not that he would have ever considered going where _she_ wasn't around.

"I'm staying."

* * *

**Prologue D: Now**

What do you think it means?

When a friend that had gone away for so long contacts you out of the blue?

What are you supposed to think?

When that same friend asks you to come to the city?

What is your next course of action?

Kida Masaomi tied the yellow scarf around his neck. Well, to be honest, those kinds of questions were dumb things to ask. After all, he already knew what he would do the minute his chat box lit up from a familiar username that he hadn't seen in a while. His decision was already etched in stone, some people might say.

"Next stop: Ikebukuro."

"Don't worry, Mikado. Your best friend will be by your side soon."

* * *

The informant chuckled lightly at his computer screen before turning his chair away to look out the window. In one hand, he absent-mindedly toyed with the white knight chess piece.

"All my pieces have gathered," he told the empty room. "Ready for another game, Ryugamine-kun?"


	2. The City of Ikebukuro

**Chapter 1: The City of Ikebukuro**

"Where is that guy?" Masaomi grumbled as he leaned against the pillar. "He used to be so punctual, too. Man, this place must be scary if it changed him this much."

Masaomi checked his phone again, but there weren't any new messages. He tried calling, but it seemed that his friend had his phone off. "C'mon, Mikado, don't leave me hanging…"

Almost as if his friend could hear him, his phone rang with a new message.

[Sorry! Got caught up. Sent someone in my stead. Hope you like her.]

A girl? Masaomi raised a brow at the pronoun and was unable to stop himself from grinning. Oh, his friend was certainly moving up in the world if he could ask a girl to come pick up his childhood friend! He could still remember shy and awkward Mikado, who stumbled over his tongue whenever he tried to talk to anyone, let alone a girl!

"You've changed a lot, haven't you?" he chuckled to himself. He picked up the duffle bag at his feet. "I wonder where she could be…"

Truth be told, he probably should have stayed where he was so that whoever the girl was, she would be able to find him fast. But he was starting to get bored of staying in one place. Surely she wouldn't mind if he wandered a little. Besides, how big could this city be?

* * *

As luck would have it, the very first thing he ran into was a girl being harassed by a group of guys. If this were Saitama, no one would dare anything like this in public where Chikage could see. But this place must not have someone as noble as the Toramaru Bike Gang Leader. Then again, it was a rather big city. Even if there was someone like Chikage here, Ikebukuro was big enough that that person might not be able to protect everyone.

"You have some nerve," one of the guys growled. "You think you can just waltz around here?"

"Now, now, that's not nice at all," Masaomi said as he walked towards them. He noted that the guys all had the same color tied around their arms. This must be the infamous Color Gangs that Chikage had cautioned him about. How exciting. "Let the poor girl be."

"It ain't your business, brat. Scram."

"When a beautiful lady is involved, it becomes my business." Masaomi winked at the girl who was giving him a curious look. Oddly enough, she didn't look too scared being cornered by the blurry guys. Maybe this was a daily enough occurrence for her? The thought made his blood boil and Masaomi decided that he wasn't going to go easy on them. What do you know? Chickage's nobility must have rubbed off on him as well.

"Kid, last chance. Walk away."

"Funny, I was going to say the same to you."

Most of the guys turned to face Masaomi with angry looks, which Masaomi returned with a cheeky smile. Did they really think that they could win just because they had numbers? Without waiting for any signs, Masaomi struck first. He brought down the biggest guy with three well-aimed punches. Chikage probably would have done it in one kick, but he wasn't quite at that level yet. But he got the feeling that being in the city would surely power him up.

"Still think you can win?"

There was a bit of a pause as the guys looked at Masaomi more carefully. Then with a loud snarl, someone yelled, "You're going down!"

* * *

It took a total of fifteen minutes. Kida Masaomi was, as he predicted, the victor. The gang had numbers by their side, but Masaomi had years of training and experience. Besides, no one could quite match up to the standard that Chikage had built in Masaomi's head.

With that out of the way, Masaomi dusted himself and turned to the girl, who had watched the entire thing with what he thought was an amused look on her face.

"My fair maiden," Masaomi declared with a bow. "I apologize for such crude display of violence before you. Are you harmed in any way?"

The girl giggled softly, but Masaomi couldn't help but to notice how off it sounded. Almost as if he was hearing it under water or through glass. It didn't come across cleanly and Masaomi felt a small part of him tense.

"You must be Kida Masaomi," she said.

Oh? Could this be the girl that Mikado sent? With that thought, Masaomi shook off the tenseness. There was no way that Mikado would send anyone sketchy. They were talking about Mikado, you know. Despite being shy and awkward, he was a great judge of character.

"Why yes, I am! If I may be so bold to ask for your name?"

"Makijima Saki. Thank you, Sir Knight, for rescuing me." She curtsied a little, playing along with Masaomi's little drama. But still something felt off about her. As if she was not quite all there. Masaomi forced down the unease that came with seeing that behavior. _Trust Mikado_, he told himself. _Trust him_.

"Ah! You're too kind!" Masaomi placed a hand over his heart. "I might just fall for you if you keep that up!" Then a littler more seriously, he added, "So how do you know Mikado?"

"We have a… friend in common."

Masaomi didn't miss the pause. Perhaps it was Mikado's girlfriend…? Masaomi grinned widely at the thought, but didn't comment more on it. He wanted to hear it from his friend's lips. He wanted to hear the stuttering voice of Mikado as the teen blushed and looked down with a bashful look in his eyes.

"But that was really sweet of Mikado to get a pretty girl like you to show me around Ikebukuro. Did you know that he couldn't even speak to girls back in the day? Ah, I'm so proud of that guy for having met such a beauty as yourself!"

Saki smiled politely as if she could care less about Masaomi's babbles. Perhaps Mikado's girlfriend was Saki's best friend? And Saki felt as if her friend was being stolen away by the heart-throb of the school, Mikado?! Masaomi mentally shook his head. He was getting ahead of himself. That kind of thought would be more fun once Mikado was there to blush and shout "Masaomi!" at him.

"So how is Mikado? I can't wait to see how much he's changed! Or maybe he hasn't changed at all? I wouldn't be surprised, that guy is pretty special like that."

"He's…" Saki trailed off, thinking carefully. "I can't say for how much he's changed. But currently, Ryugamine-san is at the top of Ikebukuro."

Masaomi wasn't sure if he understood what that meant. But Saki didn't explain further, so he didn't push. He was going to see Mikado soon anyways. No need to get antsy. He would find out soon enough.

* * *

"There sure are a lot of colors," Masaomi observed lightly.

"Color gangs," Saki said as an explanation. "Don't tell me you didn't know that before you challenged those guys earlier?"

"I don't see why that's so important. If you're strong, you don't flock together to bully innocent girls."

"You are a strange one."

"I prefer the term noble."

Saki giggled and again, Masaomi felt himself tense. Just what was it about that giggle? No, now that he thought a little more about it, it wasn't just the giggle. It was in the way she moved and the way she talked. She just felt off and Masaomi wasn't sure how else to describe it. Just how did Mikado meet her and why did he choose her of all people?

* * *

"I'll pick you up tomorrow," she offered when they arrived at Masaomi's humble apartment. "We can go to school together."

"Oh, you also go to Raira?"

She nodded. "I look forward to seeing you again, Sir Knight."

"And I you, my fair maiden."

Despite how beautiful she was, Masaomi still couldn't quite shake off the feeling of strangeness. What was it? Perhaps he could ask Mikado about it? Surely, Mikado would be able to pinpoint it without any problem.

* * *

No new messages from Mikado. Masaomi frowned a little. Just how busy was that guy?

He placed the duffle bag down on the ground and looked around. The place came furnished with the old renter's things, which was the reason why Masaomi had wanted this place. It was cheaper than the other places because apparently the previous renter died in here and blah blah blah. Mikado sent him a well-researched list of apartments that would be affordable, but Masaomi hadn't really read anything too carefully. He had just looked at the prices and decided on this.

And now that he was here…

"Ikebukuro!" he shouted with a laugh. "I'm three years late, but I'm finally here!"

* * *

When Masaomi and Mikado were in the last year of elementary school, they saw an anime that took place in Tokyo. That wasn't the only reason why they decided to come to Ikebukuro, but it was the main one in Masaomi's mind.

They pleaded and begged and bargained with their parents until finally, it seemed as if everything was going to go their way. The two of them were going to live in Ikebukuro together while going to school, just like anime characters!

Masaomi didn't expect his mother to collapse that year.

A minor stroke, the doctors said. But how the hell was he supposed to leave her and go off to Ikebukuro? The thought of having fun soured his mouth and in the end, he waved goodbye to his best friend.

But you know, that was three years ago. Many things have happened since then. Masaomi was no longer the bitter child who felt betrayed by the world. Just as he suspected that Mikado was no longer the cry-baby who depended on Masaomi.

He was looking forward to seeing his friend again.

* * *

Saki looked cute in the Raira uniform.

"Good morning," she greeted him in that eerie manner that put Masaomi's hair on edge.

"Good morning, my fair maiden!" Masaomi greeted back with a bright smile as if he wasn't bothered. "Did you have wonderful dreams about me? Because your beautiful smile haunted mine!"

He quietly hoped that he didn't have to spend much longer with her.

* * *

Raira Academy loomed ahead of them and Masaomi could barely contain his giddiness. Finally! Finally! He was going to be able to see his friend again!

"Then I'll leave you to it," Saki said with a small nod. Then she was off, leaving before anyone could really notice that the two came to school together. Perhaps she was just shy about that?

Well, it didn't matter all that much to him. Right now, Masaomi's head was filled with jokes that he could spring on Mikado. Right now, his heart was racing at the thought of seeing his friend again. Right now, there was little to nothing that could bring Masaomi down from his high.

* * *

Masaomi did not see Mikado during the Orientation. Nor did he see him during the tour of the school. It was unusual. Mikado was an honest guy who paled at the thought of skipping. Where was he? Masaomi drummed his finger against crossed arms. He gave the tour guide a bright smile and asked a flirty question, but his heart wasn't really into it. Just where was Mikado anyways?

He heard the whispers before he understood what was going on.

"Oh my gosh, is that really him?"

"I've heard that he-"

"Shh, don't say it. You don't know who might be listening."

"The Emperor actually showed up!"

"Why is that guy here…?"

"He came with his guard dog."

"Well, they're never that far apart."

Masaomi's eyes followed the whispers and landed at the school gate. And at first, he wasn't too sure what he was seeing. A bartender with a student who was bandaged up? It was an odd enough sight by itself, and the added backdrop of the school made it even worse. But then the student nodded and walked away from the bartender, and Masaomi finally saw the student's bruised face.

With a cold look that Masaomi had never imagined he'd ever see on that face, one Ryugamine Mikado made his way towards the school building.

* * *

Fifteen seconds.

It took him a total of fifteen seconds to snap back to reality. Without any excuse or explanation to the tour group, Masaomi turned on his heels and rushed to the front of the school. He vaguely heard shouts behind him and around him, but he couldn't focus on that. In his mind's eyes, all he saw was Mikado's face. The dark bruise on Mikado's left cheek, the band aid over Mikado's right brow, the cold look in his eyes as if he lost all hope in this world.

"Mikado!" The name tore out from his throat as Masaomi screeched to a halt few feet before his friend. Despite the worry over the injuries and the dark look about his friend, Masaomi couldn't stop the wide grin on his face. "Mikado!"

But what greeted him wasn't the bright smile that he'd always imagined his friend would have on his face. In fact, Mikado tilted his head to the side, looking at Masaomi as if he was calculating something (as if he was a math problem, except that wasn't quite right. The look in Mikado's eyes when he tackled math problems weren't this cold, this detached).

"Who are you?"

"Ah… How cold! Jeesh, just because I dyed my hair, you don't even recognize me? Alright, no choice. I'll have to give you three choices. Choice 1, Kida Masaomi. Choice 2, Kida Masaomi. Choice 3, Kida Masaomi!"

Mikado's eyes widened and there was a spark of something in his eyes. And in that moment, Masaomi saw the small kid that he had been so close to. Masaomi laughed, feeling strangely relieved at something although he wasn't too sure what. He went to put his arm around Mikado's shoulders but before his hand could reach his friend, flashes of blue stood in between them.

Three Raira students stood there, two of them glaring down at Masaomi and the other one with a polite smile to Mikado. And with their appearance, any ounce of emotion on Mikado's face shut down and his eyes regained that cold glint.

"Ryugamine-san," the one with the polite smile greeted. "Is this brute bothering you? Should we throw out the trash?" Despite the friendly tone of voice, the look that this kid shot Masaomi brought a shiver down his spine. _What the hell? _

"Leave him alone," Mikado said. Then he turned to walk down a hall. "He's no one special."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Masaomi shouted. He took a step forward towards Mikado, only to be stopped by the three students.

"Ryugamine-san might have told us to leave you alone, but if you bother him, we will eliminate you." The kid sneered, obviously not thinking much of Masaomi. "Crawl back to whatever sewer you came out of."

Masaomi snarled, but he could care less about these guys. The one he wanted to talk to was over there, walking away. "Mikado!" he yelled over the students. "If you're going to treat me like this, then why did you invite me?"

Mikado didn't even pause or turn around. "I didn't," he answered calmly. He didn't shout or speak louder than a normal conversational level, but Masaomi could hear it clearly. "I haven't been in contact with you since you called me a traitor."

Then he was gone, leaving Masaomi confused and frustrated.


	3. The Pariahs of Ikebukuro

I ended up rewriting this chapter multiple times. I wanted to try a different character's POV for each chapter, but it appears that Masaomi wants to be the sole star. Sorry for taking so long with this.

Previously: Masaomi finally sees his childhood friend, but Mikado has also changed a lot in the last three years.

* * *

**Chapter 2: The Pariahs of Ikebukuro **

"Then I won't go either!" Ryugamine Mikado had said when he first heard Masaomi's predicament.

Ladies and gentlemen, allow him to introduce you to his best friend. Even without him asking Mikado to, Mikado was willing to drop the future that he'd been planning for a year. Mikado was more than willing to sacrifice the life he always dreamt of. Mikado was ready to stay by his side, no matter what happened. Because that was what friends did for each other.

And as his best friend, Kida Masaomi could not allow that to happen.

"Don't be silly," he forced himself to say. There was a barrage of emotions warring within him at the moment, but the shred of logic was something he couldn't ignore. "You go to Ikebukuro. That way, you'll be able to show me around once mom gets better. This isn't for forever, you know."

Mikado hesitated in answering, but Masaomi saw the relief in his eyes. He saw the excitement. Because even though Mikado was willing to stay, it would've been like keeping a bird caged after promising it freedom. And just how could Masaomi do something like that to his best friend?

The image of Mikado's excited smile as he said, "Thank you," became overlapped by the image of the cold Mikado who hadn't even recognize him. Just what had happened in the last three years? How could Mikado have change this much? Well sure, Masaomi had changed, too, but…

"Hey you!"

Masaomi snapped out of his thoughts just in time to see someone grab him by the shoulders. He quickly brushed the hand off, and while he was distracted, the newcomer began talking.

"You! What are you to the Emperor?"

The newcomer had sleek back brown hair and looked way too serious for Masaomi's comfort. There was a slight panic in his eyes that Masaomi had seen one time too many, and the newcomer had an edge to his voice that brought up Masaomi's guard. Whoever this guy was, Masaomi got the feeling that he wasn't going to enjoy this.

"What the hell is this about an Emperor?" Masaomi asked. He felt himself slip into a defensive stance, ready to fight if things escalated. Well, it was fine, wasn't it? He had wanted to spend the rest of the day with his best friend, but if Mikado was going to be this cold, then he might as well as relieve some stress by fighting.

"The Emperor. Ryugamine Mikado. You know him," the newcomer continued as if he didn't notice Masaomi's stance. "For how long? How well?"

"What's it to you?"

Finally, the newcomer seemed to realize that he had come off too strongly. He took a small step back and took a deep breath. "Sorry," he said. "Let me try again. I'm Yagiri Seiji. I have reasons to believe the Emperor… that is, Ryugamine Mikado… He took someone important to me. So please… I need to know. What are you to him?"

* * *

Masaomi wasn't too sure how things ended up like this. He sat across from Seiji, who looked around the burger joint with a mild look of discomfort as if he had never come to places like these before. Masaomi ordered himself a full meal as if this was a natural occurrence while Seiji just stuck to a drink. And once they finally settled in, they talked.

"Aw, it's such a shame! I really wanted to come to places like these with Mikado to pick up chicks!" Masaomi whined as he bit into his burger.

Seiji didn't even blink twice at those words. Instead, he took a sip of his drink, making a small face. Could he not be used to drinking soda?

"Do you… do these types of things a lot with the Emperor?"

"Okay, first off, stop it with this 'Emperor' business. It's creepy. Second, yup. We used to stop by a lot of places to pick up chicks." Masaomi took another bite. "And third, what the hell did you mean that Mikado took someone?"

There was a small pause before Seiji put down his drink. "It's a long story, but the best way I can phrase it is this: Ryugamine Mikado stole the woman I love and has hidden her away."

"Yeah, you're going to have to tell me the long story. What you just said doesn't match his personality at all." Masaomi picked up a fry and dipped it in ketchup. "Mikado can barely work up the courage to talk to a girl, let alone steal them. And even if he has changed to that degree, he's not the type to steal people away just for fun. You must've done something to him first."

Seiji picked up his drink but didn't put it near his mouth. He just stared at the closed lid in deep contemplation. "She… Technically, she wasn't mine."

Masaomi rolled his eyes and bit into the fry. "What the hell? Then it's not like you have any room to complain, now is there?"

"You don't understand!" Seiji slammed down the drink and looked away from Masaomi. "She's… my everything."

Just as Masaomi had feared. Seiji was a troublesome guy. From the sounds of things, most likely, Mikado had realized that Seiji was being a creep to the girl and rescued her. Any way you looked at this situation, Mikado was the hero here. And now the sore loser wanted to get information on his friend through cheap tactics like this?

Jeesh, the city sure was filled with filth.

"Why 'Emperor'? I mean, yeah, it's fitting. But there's more to it than the fact that it's his name, isn't it?"

Seiji looked a little taken back at the sudden change of topic. He fiddled with the drink in his hand before taking a sip. Again, that face of discomfort appeared. If he didn't like the drink, why did he force himself to drink it?

"… Hey you… How long have you been in Ikebukuro?"

"I just arrived yesterday."

A dark look came across Seiji's face. "That means you have nothing you can offer me. Good bye."

As suddenly as he had appeared, Seiji walked away, leaving Masaomi to finish the meal by himself. To be honest, Masaomi felt relief at seeing that retreating back. At least he didn't have to prepare himself for an explosion.

* * *

Perhaps he shouldn't have been so happy that Seiji had left him. Masaomi rubbed the back of his neck and sighed.

"Really… where am I?"

He had studied the maps intensely the night before, but that was only the route to and from school. Small detours like the burger joint hadn't been a part of that calculation. He supposed if things got desperate enough, he'd just ask a pretty girl walking by for help, but he really wanted to be shown the city by Mikado…

"Such is the dilemma of one Kida Masaomi," he mumbled to himself. Ah, if only Mikado was here to chuckle at his lame jokes.

"You've got some nerve!"

Masaomi peeked over to a darkened alleyway, where a group of colored gang members seemed to have someone surrounded. This city must be determined to turn him into some kind of a hero with the way it kept shoving him into these situations. He sighed a little. Should he help? Well, it wasn't like he couldn't…

"I'm just pointing out the truth. The reason you've cornered me is because despite the demise of the Pharmacy, you're afraid of its reach," came the calm answer of the victim.

Ugh. Of course. Of all the people that the color gang had cornered, of course, it was none other than Yagiri Seiji. Masaomi hesitated again. Should he help? It wasn't like Seiji was that good of a person that made Masaomi want to jump to his rescue. But at the same time, he disliked that the odds were stacked so high against Seiji right now.

Well, Mikado always admired his heroic tendencies.

Masaomi pulled out his yellow scarf from inside of his bag. It wasn't much, but he got the feeling that he should at the very least cover his face. That way, even if they knew to track him down to Raira Academy, they wouldn't be able to get Masaomi in trouble with the school.

"Hey, leave him alone!"

The color gang members turn to him with sneers on their faces. They eyed the bright yellow of his scarf with clear disdain.

"What do you want, brat?"

"Get out of here! It's dangerous!" Seiji exclaimed.

Huh. So maybe Seiji wasn't that bad of a guy. Masaomi waved at him to stand down. "It's distasteful to gang up on one guy," he said. "So why don't I take you on as well?"

"You probably think you're being a hero, kid. You probably think you're saving some poor sap. But this guy you're trying to save? He's a Yagiri."

"Yeah, I have no idea what that means." Masaomi said with a shrug. "But see, that guy's a classmate. And I'm not the type to let others bully in my territory."

* * *

This time, it took him a little less than thirty minutes, even with Seiji's help. It was pretty obvious from the fight that these gangsters were more powerful than the ones who attacked Saki earlier. Either that, or these guys came here prepared to fight. But in the end, Seiji and Masaomi stood as the victors, even though they did suffer minor injuries.

"Thank you," Seiji said as they walked out of the alleyway. "You didn't have to, especially after I was so rude to you."

Masaomi pulled down the yellow scarf. "Hey, don't worry about it. I'm just naturally a good guy, you know?" There was a small lull in the conversation before Masaomi finally asked the question. "So what did they mean that you're a Yagiri?"

Seiji stayed quiet. And just when Masaomi was ready to give it up, he finally opened his mouth to speak. "That's not a safe conversation. It's not much, but I have some basic first aid at my place. Let's talk there."

* * *

Seiji's apartment had as much personality as the person himself. For the most part, the place was squeaky clean. Seiji seemed to be a little OCD about putting things where they belong, which kind of explained his reaction to Mikado "stealing" his girl. The messiest part was the trash, which was overflowing with convenience store food and instant noodles.

As soon as they arrived, Seiji headed towards the kitchen, where he pulled out a first aid kit from under the sink. Masaomi wisely did not question why they were there. The first aid kit was actually a rather giant box filled with ridiculous amount of medical supplies. In fact, Masaomi was pretty sure some of those things couldn't be bought over the counter.

"Whoa, what's up with that?" Masaomi mumbled as Seiji pulled out random supplies. He passed an ointment to Masaomi.

"It was the family business," Seiji said. There was the smallest hint of a smile, but for the most part, he looked stoic as he applied the ointment on himself. "The Yagiri Pharmacy. For a short while, we even had a monopoly over Tokyo's medical supplies."

Masaomi whistled at that. He opened the ointment and applied some to where he had been hit earlier. "That's really impressive."

"It didn't last too long. Our company was always shady. So the fact that we entered the limelight only meant that it became that much more obvious on what kind of dealings we did at the side. Not to mention sis has a bad habit of making enemies with the wrong people."

"So the shady business was brought into the light, huh?" Masaomi concluded.

"Yeah, the Emperor was pretty thorough about it."

Oh great, back to the "Emperor" business! Masaomi blinked, when the words actually sunk in. Wait. What? "Are you saying that Miakdo-?!"

"It couldn't be helped!" Seiji grumbled. "It was the only way to free her from the company."

"… Huh?"

Seiji sighed heavily. "I didn't want to say everything but… Okay, the woman I love? She was one of the guinea pigs for the Yagiri Pharmacy. For me, it was a way to free her. For the Emperor, it was a way to shut down opposition."

"Wait, are you saying that you made a deal with Mikado and…?"

"In a sense."

How scary. To throw away his family business like that. Not to mention Mikado's involvement in this as well… Masaomi screwed the ointment close and passed it back to Seiji.

"I provided him with information secretly. It didn't look like he'd be interested in her, so I didn't think it'd be important to tell him my goals. But instead he…" Seiji aggressively put the medical supplies back.

Oh, so it wasn't a case of back-stabbing. Masaomi let out a small sigh of relief. Mikado must've noticed that she was being used for illegal things and whisked her away in order to save her. Ah, why was it that his friend suddenly seemed more and more cool?

"Jeesh, and I thought I was a hero," Masaomi thought out loud. "But hey, can you answer me another question?"

"If you mean about why he's called Emperor, I'll tell you."

Masaomi grinned. Finally! Now they were going somewhere!

"How many color gangs do you think is out on the streets right now?"

"Eh? I think I saw… at least five different colors?" Masaomi made a face, clearly not liking detours to get to his answers. Why couldn't Seiji just get straight to the point?

"Three years ago, there was a color monopoly. The group was called the Blue Squares and they were led by Izumi Ran. Two months after the school term began, the Blue Squares was completely destroyed."

"Wait… You can't mean that…?"

"At that time, he was still a no-name person. But after making that kind of a splash and with his flashy name, he soon became the Emperor."

"But how could he…?" Hell, Mikado was in middle school at the time! That was when he first arrived at Ikebukuro! How could he have brought down such a big color gang by himself?

Seiji shook his head. "I'm sorry. But that's the extent of my knowledge. I've never been too interested in other people."

"Is that so? Well, it's fine. I managed to find out quite a lot thanks to you. I wonder if Makijima-chan knows anything more?"

"Wha… What did you say?"

"Hm? You wanted me to thank you louder? Jeesh, you're a troublesome guy-"

"No… You… You know Makijima Saki?"

Could it be? Was Makijima Saki the one that Seiji liked? Well, Masaomi supposed that would explain the creepy feeling he got from her. She was a test subject! And if that was so, then he could just let the two get together and not involve Mikado and-

"Are you planning on being the Emperor's friend again?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course I am!"

"Then you need to get away from her. Don't meet her, don't even mention her in front of the Emperor."

Masaomi frowned. "What are you freaking out about? Makijima-chan is-"

"If I am hated due to my association as a Yagiri, then Makijima Saki is hated for her association with… _that_ man."

"… Who?"

Seiji growled lowly, obviously frustrated by Masaomi's lack of knowledge. "In Ikebukuro, there are two people whose name will undoubtedly come up if you ask who the strongest man is. One is Heiwajima Shizuo and the other is Orihara Izaya."

"But what does that have anything to do with me?"

"It has to do with the Emperor!" Seiji exclaimed. Despite the loudness of his voice, his face didn't show much expression. "Orihara Izaya is Ryugamine Mikado's sworn enemy! And Makijima Saki is his puppet! Are you putting it together now?"

Actually, a lot of things were finally clicking into place. The reason that Saki was being attacked when he first met her, the reason that she quickly left him alone at the school, the reason that Mikado was the Emperor, and the reason that Seiji was hated…

"So basically, I have to find Orihara Izaya," he concluded.

"Haven't you heard a single thing I said?"

"No, no," Masaomi said, waving a hand. "I listened closely. This is the only way. After all, Mikado's not going to let me get close, not with his goons standing by his side. You don't know what happened. Then the only person who can give me any kind of help or information is this Orihara Izaya person as Mikado's enemy. Therefore, I have to talk to Makijima-chan."

Seiji's look clearly stated his disgust with him. But at this moment in time, Masaomi didn't have that many cards to play.

"So Seiji, why don't you help me as well?"

"And why would I do that?"

"To find the one you love. Didn't you say that Mikado has her? If I get close to him, we'll be able to figure out where she is."

Seiji sighed. "... You actually thought this through... Okay, fine. I will cooperate with you. But hey, don't forget that I warned you. Orihara Izaya is dangerous."

But compared to Mikado's behavior, Masaomi highly doubted that anything could hurt him more.

"So what is this Orihara Izaya like?"


End file.
